Category: Photo Gallery

Hey guys, hope you all stayed safe during the tropical storm! Before it arrived we were able to meet up twice this week at the Merizo site and a meeting to discuss our data.

Day 1 of this week we continued algal removal on/around coral colonies in Merizo. Here’s an update on the catch bags: We did put them in buckets with small holes in the bottom and attached a pool noodle around the top part of the bucket, so it stayed above water (Thank you for your help, Farron and Val!). This helped prevent the bags from dragging/stirring up sediment and kept afloat, making the algal removal process a lot smoother. We just had to remember to hold onto them since they can float away!

Pool ring helped keep opening on the surface

Holes allowed for some submersion in the water

We used the GPS unit to find our sites and laid out our transect tape. From there, on both sides of the tape we used one-meter survey rods as boundaries. We removed algae on/around corals within 2x25m area at each transect. Most of what we collected was a brown algae called Padina species (sp.).

As we removed algae, we noticed more invertebrates and fish appeared around the corals. In one crevice, we discovered a snow eel that peeking out curiously after we removed a lot of Padina sp. We also noticed fish began eating the turf algae from the corals we cleared and came toward us and helped graze on the turf algae. It was a cool to see an immediate reaction from fish!

Catch bags filled with algae.

Once we completed algal removal, we returned to shore. We drained the water out of the catch bags for the same amount of time and weighed them to see how much we algae collected. The heaviest bag weighed about 6870 grams (or 15 lbs!). We repeated this method on our last transect and called it a day.

Inputting survey data

The next day was a short workshop on inputting data into Microsoft Excel. We took the information we collected out in the field and neatly inputted into a few spreadsheets. Our supervisor also taught us how to create graphs to illustrate data as visualizations that will help present our project to others. We ended with a discussion on how the field work went the previous day and to think about some hypothesis we have for our projects. Check in next time for our next update!

Here’s your chance to join FOR Guam’s Coral Reef Monitoring Team! Join us this Saturday, June 23rd from 9am-12pm at the Tepungan Beach Park (next to Fish Eye Marine Observatory) in Piti. We provide snorkel gear, life jackets, and a limited number of tabbies. This a fun way to get to know Guam’s waters even more and contribute to tracking its health.

Please note that participants under 14 must be accompanied by parent or other trusted adult. 14 do not need a parent with them, but must have liability release form signed by their parent/guardian to participate. Liability release forms will be available on site. Click here to sign up.

“Louis Agassiz is one of the marine biology laboratory systems founders in the United States. He was a firm believer in a “hands-on” approach to science, and is infamous for his adage, “study nature, not books.”

This Science Sunday we feature team members of the Fish Spawning Survey Habitat, or FISSH, led by the Micronesia Conservation Coalition. Members include local university students and science enthusiasts who learned basic fish survey techniques that expanded into more advanced research methods to study fish spawning on Guam. Learn about their experience, methods, and conclusions from this hands-on project.

So join us for this Science Sunday on June 17 at 2pm at the T. Stell Newman Visitor Center. This event is free and open to the public; no registration required. Seats are available on a first come, first serve basis.

Summer is here – rainier than usual, but it’s here! It’s exciting to let out that sigh of relief when the end of semester chaos is over and the horizon of what summer 2018 will bring. On our horizon, you can be part of new efforts in coral reef conservation for our island.

Through this unpaid internship, interns will:

Gain valuable field and work experience in coral reef restoration

Receive training in water safety and field techniques for coral restoration

Join us for another fun Science Sunday! For the first time, we will feature mangrove ecosystems. Our guest speaker, Jessica Gross will share the importance of mangroves, some of the threats to mangroves, and her work in mangroves areas on Guam and abroad. Science Sunday is this Sunday, May 20 at 2pm at the T. Stell Newman Visitor Center.

Mangrove areas on Guam can be seen in the Sasa Bay Marine Preserve Area and the Achang Marine Preserve Area. You’re likely to notice them with their large protruding roots along the coast as you’re driving in Sumay or along Merizo toward Inarajan. So what’s so important about mangroves?

You can explore Guam’s mangroves on kayaks or paddle boards. Photo by Guam BSP.

Coastal protection from storms – mangroves are a buffer that help keep our coasts from eroding away and flooding

This is just a preview of what’s to come for Science Sunday. Jessica will share other reasons why these mangroves are so important for our island and some of the threats they face today. We hope you can make it to this one-of-a-kind talk. Get a preview from Jessica from her interview with KUAM.

Science Sunday speaker, Brent Tibbatts, returns to Science Sunday for some “unusuWHALE history” on April 15 at 2pm at the T. Stell Newman Visitor Center. Brent will talk about different species we can find in Micronesia, especially those that frequent the Marianas. Did you know that the whaling industry in the 19th century included Micronesia? Get some insight on the history of whaling in Micronesia from Brent. And probably one of the coolest experiences Brent will share is what happens during a marine mammal stranding, such as saving a beached whale. Aren’t you overWHALEmed with excitement? Science Sunday is free and open to the public. No sign-up is required. Seats are available on a first come, first served basis. For more info, email gureefmonitoring@gmail.com or call 646-1905.

In March, Guam celebrates Mes CHamoru (CHamoru Month) to honor the CHamoru culture and history. Storytelling is one way our local community continue our cultural values and CHamoru heritage. This Science Sunday we honor CHamoru culture through storytelling about changes to Guam’s reefs and coasts experienced by Luis Cabral II, this month’s guest speaker. Cabral’s outlook on life is influenced by the ocean and our island’s reefs. As a fisherman and Master SCUBA Diver Trainer, Cabral will share his personal reflections growing up near the water and how those changes shaped who he is today.

Photo courtesy of L. Cabral.

“As I get older and reflect on life, I think about the growing up I did beyond school – in my own backyard which was my Mom’s before me. So did I learn from experience or did I realize what could be lost to the next generation?”

Meet Luis and hear his story at Science Sunday on March 18, 2018 at 2pm at the T. Stell Newman Visitor Center. This event is free and open to the public. Seating is available on a first come, first serve basis. Get a sneak preview of Science Sunday here.

For more information, call 646-1905 or email gureefmonitoring@gmail.com.